The work of the conference reported herein was divided into plenary sessions and into working groups which were constituted so as to ensure a multidisciplinary approach to the topic under discussion. The Conference reviewed the definition of epidemiology insofar as it can be applied to injury-producing road accidents, and determined criteria for the identification of high-risk groups and the evaluation of screening procedures. In the case of environmental factors that influence the risk of injury-producing road accidents, the conference felt that public health authorities should apply epidemiological techniques to their evaluation, not only with a view to preventing the accident, but also to determine their influence on accident severity. A summary is presented of conclusions relating to the following: national returns of road accident mortality and morbidity; hospital-based statistics; permanent incapacity from road accidents; road accident morbidity information sytems; injury coding systems; comparative analysis of road accidents; roadside surveys; risk factors; children, young people, and old persons at risk; roadside surveys; risk factors; children, young people, and old persons at risk; medical conditions, eyesight, alcohol, drugs, psychological and sociological risk factors; screening for the aforementioned risk factors; driving tests; injury protection, education; role of health personnel; traffic regulations; law enforcement; sanctions; environmental legislation; costs and benefits; and the role of public health authorities.
Abstract